Laboratory Studies of Mantle Convection

Davaille, Anne; Limare, Angela

doi:10.1016/b978-0-444-53802-4.00128-7

Cited by 30 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 503 publications

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“…Values of T H and Ra H as well as fluid properties for the 30 experiments are listed in table 1. Experimental values of Pr (3 × 10 2 < Pr < 3 × 10 4 ) are large enough for viscous effects to dominate over inertial ones (Davaille & Limare 2007). The experimental Ra H is between 5 × 10 4 and 2 × 10 7 .…”

Section: Laboratory Experiments In the Microwave Ovenmentioning

confidence: 98%

Microwave-heating laboratory experiments for planetary mantle convection

et al. 2015

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International audienceThermal evolution of telluric planets is mainly controlled by secular cooling and internal heating due to the decay of radioactive isotopes, two processes that are equivalent from the standpoint of convection dynamics. In a fluid cooled from above and volumetrically heated, convection is dominated by instabilities of the top boundary layer and the interior thermal structure is non-isentropic. Here we present innovative laboratory experiments where microwave radiation is used to generate uniform internal heat in fluids at high Prandtl number (>300) and high Rayleigh–Roberts number (ranging from 104 to 107), appropriate for planetary mantle convection. Non-invasive techniques are employed to determine both temperature and velocity fields. We successfully validate the experimental results by conducting numerical simulations in three-dimensional Cartesian geometry that reproduce the experimental conditions. Scaling laws relating key characteristics of the thermal boundary layer, namely its thickness and temperature drop, to the Rayleigh–Roberts number have been established for both rigid and free-slip boundary conditions. A robust conclusion is that for rigid boundary conditions the internal temperature is significantly higher than for free-slip boundary conditions. Our scaling laws, coupled with plausible physical parameters entering the Rayleigh–Roberts number, enable us to calculate the mantle potential temperature for the Earth and Venus, two telluric planets with different mechanical boundary conditions at their surface

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Section: Laboratory Experiments In the Microwave Ovenmentioning

confidence: 98%

Microwave-heating laboratory experiments for planetary mantle convection

et al. 2015

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“…As extensively reviewed in Schubert & Bercovici (2009), research on those topics is focused on theoretical, numerical and experimental materials and methods, and moreover on the geophysical observations themselves. Especially, laboratory experiments have the character of 'exploring new physics and testing theories' (Davaille & Limare 2009). There, authors summarize the results from a huge series of tank experiments, which are designed to understand Rayleigh-Bénard convection phenomena and its relations to overall mantle dynamics.…”

Section: Thermally Driven Flow In Liquids Of Temperature-dependent VImentioning

confidence: 99%

Sheet-like and plume-like thermal flow in a spherical convection experiment performed under microgravity

et al. 2013

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We introduce, in spherical geometry, experiments on electro-hydrodynamic driven Rayleigh-Bénard convection that have been performed for both temperatureindependent ('GeoFlow I') and temperature-dependent fluid viscosity properties ('GeoFlow II') with a measured viscosity contrast up to 1.5. To set up a selfgravitating force field, we use a high-voltage potential between the inner and outer boundaries and a dielectric insulating liquid; the experiments were performed under microgravity conditions on the International Space Station. We further run numerical simulations in three-dimensional spherical geometry to reproduce the results obtained in the 'GeoFlow' experiments. We use Wollaston prism shearing interferometry for flow visualization -an optical method producing fringe pattern images. The flow patterns differ between our two experiments. In 'GeoFlow I', we see a sheet-like thermal flow. In this case convection patterns have been successfully reproduced by three-dimensional numerical simulations using two different and independently developed codes. In contrast, in 'GeoFlow II', we obtain plume-like structures. Interestingly, numerical simulations do not yield this type of solution for the low viscosity contrast realized in the experiment. However, using a viscosity contrast of two orders of magnitude or higher, we can reproduce the patterns obtained in the 'GeoFlow II' experiment, from which we conclude that nonlinear effects shift the effective viscosity ratio.

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“…The existence of several plumes beneath Africa is predicted by the physics of mantle convection. Hot mantle plumes are one of the main features of mantle thermal convection (for reviews, see Davaille & Limare, 2015; Schubert et al, 2001). In a system cooled from above and heated from below, the intensity of convection and the convective patterns are controlled by the Rayleigh number

italicRa = \frac{italicαρg normalΔ T H^{3}}{κν},

where α is thermal expansion coefficient, ρ is density, g is gravity acceleration, Δ T is the temperature difference across the system, H is the thickness of fluid layer, κ is thermal diffusivity, and ν is viscosity.…”

Section: Geodynamical Constraints On Morphology and Time Dependence Omentioning

confidence: 99%